‘Magic Mirrors’ Boost Self-Confidence of Unsuspecting Shoppers

— -- “Mirror, mirror on the wall… who’s the fairest of them all,” is no longer just for fairy tales.

“Magic mirrors,” of sorts, are now popping up as an experiment designed to boost people’s self-confidence, telling them how they should really feel about the image staring back at them.

IKEA, the popular Swedish furniture store, recently unveiled their new “Motivational Mirror” in Britain last week, created for the purpose of delivering uplifting, confidence-boosting comments to those gazing into their own reflection.

Comments like, “You look amazing today,” “that’s a magnificent beard,” and “Wow, have you been working out?” greeted shoppers as they approached the real-life “magic mirror.”

“With well over two-thirds of Britons claiming image insecurity and self-doubt, IKEA have today announced the launch of the ‘Motivational Mirror’ – bestowing personalized compliments to provide the nation with a much needed morale boost,” IKEA’s description on their YouTube video showing off their new device, which has already garnered nearly 115,000 views since Oct. 2, read.

It’s a page out of the Dove playbook, which released an ad last year aimed at changing the way women see their own beauty as an FBI-trained forensic sketch artist first draws a woman as she describes herself, then draws her as a total stranger describes her. The difference in results couldn’t have been more dramatic.

Now an all-female Texas rock band called The Mrs. with their hit song, “Enough,” is trying the experiment in real life with their #imEnough campaign.

“Women go around beating themselves up for every little thing, and it’s time we stop,” Andra Liemandt, the band’s founder and drummer, told ABC News.

They set up a talking mirror at a local mall which then comes to life as shoppers stand before it.

“Don’t be afraid of the reflection you see,” the mirror says as it talks to the women. “You are an amazing woman, and today I want you to look in this mirror and not just feel ‘ok.’”

When asked what the phrase “I’m enough” means to Liemandt, she replied, “It means ‘I’m enough for my family and for my friends.’”

And judging by their social experiment which has gone viral with more than 3 million views on YouTube, their “magic mirror” is successfully convincing women everywhere that they are, indeed, enough.